“New Hampshire is the embodiment of personal responsibility,” praised former President Bill Clinton. These days, giving compliments seems among the best ways to make friends.

Ask any of the many college students in attendance at Clinton’s campaign stop for President Barack Obama at the University of New Hampshire Wednesday afternoon. In your very first college course, tell the girl next to you she has cute shoes and you have a friend for life, or at least four years.

Having a way with words makes both Clinton and Obama appeal to my generation, because, frankly, if it’s not delicately laid out in black and white and dusted with a positive message, we don’t want to hear it.

In addition to being the sensitive generation, we’re a generation that believes everyone makes mistakes and deserves forgiveness — a good thing for Bill Clinton. While in elementary school, looking up to our president of the United States, Clinton made some questionable moral decisions.

But, if you ask a 20-something about his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky they’ll likely say, “Hey, everyone makes mistakes, right?” While I don’t believe Clinton is to blame for young adults tending to be far less accountable for questionable actions, watching his downfalls play out on television does make him more human, and less like Superman. Among my generation the mentality is if he can mess up and be forgiven, so can I.

Though Clinton left many with negative feelings toward him, President Obama has forgiven him — at least enough to accept all of Clinton’s invaluable help on the campaign trail.

The “cool” president who played jazz music on a saxophone preceded the days of a verbal-fumbling George “dub-ya” Bush, and there’s no question the 66-year-old Clinton who “did not inhale” appeals to a young and eager generation of voters who appreciate his oratorical skills.

During his visit he asked, “Are you gettin’ high every day because you’re makin’ something good happen for yourself?” — which was followed by an extended rupture of cheers.

Looking back on the carefree days of bumpy school bus rides, and bringing what seemed like half the playground sand home in my shoes evokes a nostalgic feeling for my generation. Many of us still associate that feeling of freedom and joy with the eight years of Clinton’s presidency. We saw our parents in a more stable financial place and our older sisters, brothers or cousins graduating college with lower debt and jobs waiting for them.

During Clinton’s speech, in the field house at UNH, he assured students allowing President Obama to serve another four years will let them stay on their parents’ health insurance until they are 26. Clinton also reminded the crowd that Obama’s opponent, Republican Mitt Romney, would make their student loans “more expensive and harder to repay.”

What better way to get us to jump on the forward-moving Obama Train than addressing our biggest fear — failing financially. Clinton promised our president can fix it. The young professionals of my generation are scared to death of having to collect welfare, or relying on the government.

Clinton was appalled at the secretly recorded and leaked audio from Romney announcing 47 percent of U.S. citizens do not pay federal income tax and want to rely on handouts. “The guy with a tax account in the Cayman Islands” is trying to call us lazy? he joked.

He also reminded the audience many of those 47 percent are college students who are adults, but don’t have income; some are seniors who have depleted their assets and are living in nursing homes; but most of them are families who work. He said, rallying the young voters, “I’ll tell you what, those families who don’t make enough money to pay federal income tax would love to make enough to pay it — because that would mean they were moving up in the world!”

Using words of optimism and encouragement makes the at-times intimidating nature of government seem a little friendlier to the young, timid about entering the workforce. Clinton said to the UNH crowd there is no reason for a contradiction between taking responsibility for yourself and also helping your neighbor at the same time. He said, why not band together as a community instead of being on your own?

As his speech concluded Clinton said simply, “It’s your future, go claim it.” He stepped back and waved nobly.

Soon after, attendees filed out with a skip in their step and hope in their heart while good ol’ American country music played in the background.

Who wouldn’t want to be told, with such ease, Obama will continue on a path forward and give my generation a break we always seem to think we deserve?

And, on the way out I overheard a young woman say to a guy with her, “Can you believe he said all of that with no teleprompter?”

He responded, “Yah, he’s the man.”

Janine Mitchell is a 20-something and the Web editor for Foster’s Daily Democrat. She can be reached at jmitchell@fosters.com